Key West improved its regular season record to 8-4-2 this week. Despite a tie on Jan. 16, the Conchs have not lost a match since Dec. 7. A match against Marathon was cut short due to a lightning storm sweeping across the Keys Jan. 16. At the time of the delay, neither team had managed to score, battling it out into the second half of play just long enough for the match to count.
The following night, the weather held out for Key West’s trip to Tavernier to play its second-closest neighbor. Key West defeated Coral Shores 4-2 in their final regular season match. Wyatt Gibson scored 2 and Nico Sulak and DJ Barrett each added 1 for the Conchs in the win. The Conchs played South Miami on Jan. 24 (results not available at press time) for their first round of playoffs. Should Key West prevail, the third-seeded Conchs will play second-seeded MAST Academy in Key Biscayne in the semifinals on Jan. 26.
The Lady Conchs played three matches last week, beginning with Somerset Silver Palms on Jan. 17. Key West scored fast and scored a lot against the Stallions in the 8-0 mercy-rule win. Jazzy Dieguez found the net four times for the Conchs. Maddie Kilduff scored twice and Jaicee Gage and Kaitlyn Franco each scored 1 in the lopsided win. The following day, Key West traveled to Coral Springs Charter, losing 2-0 against the Panthers. They fell 7-0 to the Manta Rays of Lemon Bay on Jan. 20 to finish out their regular season 6-7-1. They will face MAST Academy on the road Thursday, Jan. 25 in the first round of district action.
Marathon’s boys mustered all they had against visiting Key West on Jan. 16, managing to keep the Conchs scoreless until the second half when the game was called for lightning strikes in the area. The 0-0 tie would be the first of three games in as many days for the Fins. They took on Palmer Trinity on the road the following night, losing 5-1 with the Fins’ goal coming off the foot of freshman Giordani Prieto. On Jan. 18 they traveled to Miami Country Day, where they lost 2-1. Jayden Rosete scored Marathon’s lone goal in the final match before districts. The Dolphins finished their regular season with a 5-6-1 record. The Fins play their first district match at Somerset South Homestead in the FHSAA 3A District 16 quarterfinals on Jan. 25. Should Marathon win, they would face Palmer on Jan. 29.
The Lady Fins suffered a pair of losses last week, first to Miami Country Day in a mercy rule 8-0 road loss. The following night they hosted Englewood’s Lemon Bay High School. Despite the 4-0 loss, Marathon played well, holding the Manta Rays to just four goals and bolstering their power rankings due to the strength-of-schedule factor, which takes into account the size, strength and record of opponents. Marathon finished its regular season 2-9-2 and played at Coral Shores in the opening round of district quarterfinal action on Jan. 24 (results not available at press time). The winner will play Palmer Trinity two days later on Friday, Jan. 26.
Coral Shores’ boys played their final match at home against Key West on Jan. 17, losing to the Conchs 4-2. Bobby Temkin and Preston Carroll each scored once against Key West. The ’Canes finished 2-7-3 in regular season action. As for the playoffs, the ’Canes first face Somerset Silver Palms on Thursday, Jan. 25. A win in that quarterfinal match would place them against Keys Gate on Monday, Jan. 29.
The Lady ’Canes lost a pair of matches to bring their regular season record to 2-9-1. On Jan. 16 they lost to South Dade 2-0 at home, then to SLAM 3-0 in Miami. Coral Shores faced Marathon in the opening round of districts. The ’Canes had the home field advantage and the upper hand in the match, having beat the Fins in one of their two prior meetings this season. The neighboring teams tied in their last game, making for an exciting matchup and a chance to move on in the FHSAA 3A bracket against first-ranked Palmer Trinity School Friday, Jan. 26.
